New symbols are popping up on some roads in Ada County. They’re part of a pilot project to increase awareness and safety for bicyclists.

Christine Myron is with the Ada County Highway District. She says the symbols are often called “sharrows.” “The shared lane markings have a large white-colored bicycle stencil that’s accompanied by two arrows that kind of tell people what direction to go," says Myron, "and the shared lane markings will also help guide bicyclists to ride in the right direction, to ride with traffic, so they can be as predictable as possible to vehicles.”

The District will also paint bright green bike lanes in some areas. “They will have a strip of green paint added to the section of a bike lane where possibly a right turn lane and a bike lane converge, increasing that awareness of the potential for bikes to be in that area.”

Some of the sharrows have already been painted on roadways. The rest, along with the green painted sections, will be added through September. Then the highway department will study how well the symbols are working and decide whether to add more.